The Still Waters ProgramWe are designed to be a 30 – 90 day 12-step immersion retreat for men

Recovery Begins When One Alcoholic Talks with Another Alcoholic

Still Waters is designed to be a 30 – 90 day 12-step immersion retreat for men with an emphasis upon spirituality as experienced when working the steps of Alcoholics Anonymous/Narcotics Anonymous. The men, residents as they are called, live together in a group fellowship along with the counseling staff. In this way, the fellowship develops into a true community striving to help and encourage one another with recovery.

“Each day, somewhere in the world, recovery begins when one alcoholic talks with another alcoholic, sharing experience, strength, and hope.”Alcoholics Anonymous, pg. xxii

The facility itself is a converted private residence nestled in the rolling hills of Perry County, near the Buffalo River and amidst large tracts of rural forest and pasture lands. Within this 35 acre retreat, a main house provides food preparation and dining services, meeting rooms, offices and housing for counseling staff. A four room “guest house” is near the heated pool and pool house and has accommodations for 8 residents who occupy semi-private rooms with private baths. Close by and down the drive is the “cottage” which has a capacity for 6 residents in semi-private accommodations plus a living room and laundry facilities. Residents may meditate in a number of areas provided in the extensive gardens or the gazebo next to the year round creek.

“As psychiatrists have often observed, defiance is the outstanding characteristic of many an alcoholic.”Twelve Steps And Twelve Traditions, pg. 31

A suitable resident is one who does not need or already has had primary treatment, who is physically and mentally stable (non mood-altering prescriptions are permitted), and has a high level of internal motivation for recovery and is able to be community and program compliant. This requires a level of maturity whereby the resident can self-direct his studies and balance his recovery efforts to his desire to partake of the recreational activities available. Intake assessment of each applicant is conducted in an attempt to insure success for all residents accepted at Still Waters. A typical day at Still Waters begins with a 7:00 am meditation group followed by a home cooked breakfast. The remainder of the day consists of two more groups devoted to step and literature study. At the conclusion of the program, a resident will have completed the first 7 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous/Narcotic Anonymous and will have built his own concordance of the recovery literature as a byproduct of assigned readings and study involving the texts, Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous Basic Text, and the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions. Following a home cooked dinner, the community travels to a local area 12 step community meeting or 12 step activity. The day then concludes with our “Accountability Group” where page 86 of Alcoholics Anonymous suggests that “when we retire at night we constructively review our day…” In addition to learning about recovery issues such as the disease concept, recovery and relapse, Still Waters emphasizes the spiritual principles associated with each step. Additionally, Still Waters provides a two day Family Services program. This emphasis upon spiritual principles is what separates the Still Waters program from others according to a number of our Alumni who report that despite having been treated at other well known facilities, the spiritual emphasis was lacking. Although the minimum stay is 30 days, the basic foundation of our program is based on resident participation and step work and our average length of stay ranges from 45 – 60 days.

“We absolutely insist on enjoying life.”Alcoholics Anonymous, pg. 132

Recreation and exercise is encouraged and the grounds at Still Waters lend themselves to most anyone’s taste. Residents may participate in such diverse activities as fishing in the stocked pond, work out in the exercise room on the tread mill, weight machine or stationary bike, hike or jog the half-mile tree lined drive, play table tennis or pool in our recreational center, get up a team for a game of horseshoes or lawn Frisbee golf or try and make some baskets in our outdoor basketball goal. For the less enthusiastic, there are meditation areas and a covered fire pit and notable opportunities to observe wild turkey and deer around the property. Our program has only been operating since September of 2009, but follow-up surveys and voluntary reporting by Still Waters alumni are extremely favorable. Our alumni are reporting that they are being restored to their families, restored to their health, regaining their happiness and peace of mind and being restored to a God of their understanding. Please contact us today if you or a loved one is struggling with alcoholism and/or addiction.

Our approach to recovery is based on the concept of Fellowship and the Spiritual Principles of Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous. We believe by developing strong ties with the 12-step community the chances of success increase exponentially.